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Monday, 28 February 2011

The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling

I'm in a classics reading mood lately and The Jungle Book had been sitting patiently on my shelf for too long. Before I get into the actual review I will admit that it was impossible for me to read this without constantly comparing it to the Disney film, which I loved as a child. The book is completely different, but I couldn't help myself thinking thoughts like "But Kaa is supposed to be the bad guy!".

Synopsis: After escaping from the tiger Shere Khan as a toddler, Mowgli is raised by wolves and must learn all of the laws of the jungle. Kipling also includes some other stories, such as Rikki Tikki Tavi and White Seal.

Score: 3 out of 5

If I could rate just the story of Mowgli, I would have given this book a 5 out of 5 without a doubt. Mowgli's story was fast-paced, full of adventure and very well written. It packed an emotional punch at times, for example when Mowgli is disowned and betrayed by the wolf pack he feels his eyes start to water and Bangheera tells him that now he knows for sure that he is human and not wolf. Mowgli's inability to fit in fully with either wolves or humans was resonant too, and something that most people can relate to. Mowgli's tale fits easily into the category of "children's books I wish I had read as a child".

But unfortunately the book doesn't finish with Mowgli. I wasn't expecting other tales and whilst I enjoyed Rikki Tikki Tavi in particular, none of the other stories had the pace or emotional connectedness that Mowgli's story did. I find myself reading them just to get finished. In my opinion the book would have been better if Mowgli's story was expanded and the others simply left out. But that is just my opinion - I can't fault the writing at all and still appreciate why it is classified as a classic.

I've read this but only remember the stories of Mowgli and Rikki Tikki Tavi. I spotted this book on my shelf recently and flipped through it thinking: white seal? Now reading your review, I'm thinking those extra tales just weren't memorable.

I really loved Anna Karenina! And I totally know what you mean about reading just to get it finished -the same thing happened to me during my recent Kipling experience! It's very odd as the writing is really very good...